Housing the capital’s key workers

An extra 25,000 affordable homes could be built in London for key workers in
the next 15 years by building accommodation over commercial properties.

This is the proposal set out by the Department for Transport, Local
Government and the Regions in a report which explores ways of creating cut-cost
housing for essential workers in London.

The department has also set up an affordable housing unit to deliver the
accommodation.

Planning minister Lord Falconer said: "Land is at a premium, but so are
the people needed to work in essential jobs. We have to think creatively about
how we provide decent homes to keep the city working."

Unions are campaigning for all 86,000 civil servants in London to receive a
pay rise and be classified as ‘essential workers’ to help them afford to live
and work in the capital.

In a joint submission to the GLA London Weighting Panel, the PCS Union and
the Council of Civil Service Unions called for more consistency in London
allowances and an across-the-board pay supplement